Stretches for neck pain are great for relaxing muscles, decreasing tension and therefore pain, which can also affect the shoulders, causing headache and discomfort in the region of the spine and shoulders.
To potentiate this home treatment, one can take a warm bath or put a warm compress on the neck before performing the stretches because the heat increases the local blood circulation, favors flexibility and promotes relaxation of the muscles, facilitating muscle stretching.
To know how to make a good warm compress read: How to treat back pain.
Some examples of stretches for neck pain are:
Stretching 1
Tilt your neck sideways as if you wanted to rest it on the right shoulder, as shown in the picture, and stand in this position for 1 minute. Then do the same exercise for the other side.
Stretching 2
Try to support your chin in the chest by stretching the back of the neck and hold this position for 1 minute.
Stretching 3
Take a deep breath and move your head back as far as you can and hold this position for 1 minute.
Each stretching should be 1 minute long and should not cause great discomfort, just the sensation of pulling the muscle. When you finish these stretches, try doing a neck massage to help you relax.
If you feel pain, burning sensation, having sand in the spine or tingling, do not do these stretches and make an appointment with a doctor or physiotherapist so that they can identify the cause of the neck pain and indicate the most appropriate treatment, which may be made with the use of medicines, physical therapy sessions or even surgery.
If you have neck pain, also do stretches to relieve back strain like the ones we listed in this video:
Keeping the correct posture is also critical to avoid neck pain. So here are some exercises to improve posture.
Here's how to do a neck massage in: Relaxing self-massage.
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